Hlabs PRE169 - 500-Format Mic Pre with Carnhill output transformer

Hlabs PRE169 - 500-Format Mic Pre with Carnhill output transformer

The PRE169 is a very versatile microphone preamp. With over 67dB of gain, it sounds great with all microphones, including vintage ribbon and dynamic ones. The combination of input gain and output level offers a wide range of colours, from a very neutral sound to an old-Neve-like character.

INSPIRATION
Inspired by the legendary Studer 169 mixing console, the PRE169's input stage is a near-perfect replication of the original Studer© design and its fairly transparent sound with massive gain range. To add more fatness, Hlabs put a (BIG) Carnhill transformer in the output section - the same you can find in Neve 51-series console - and packed it all in a (tiny) 500 series format.

3 MAIN FEATURES YOU WILL LOVE

1. The perfect input section for ribbon mics and low level sources, with more than 67dB gain.
2. A very musical 12dB/octave High Pass Filter, tuneable from 20 to 315Hz, to clean that messy low end.
3. A simple DI input, but try it... you could fall in love with that big transformer sound!

WONDERING WHAT'S INSIDE?
The massive Carnhill VT24499 transformer gives the PRE169 it's unique character.
A Neutrik NTM-4 input transformer for almost unsaturable input gain.
An old-fashioned assembly of 100% discrete THT components through the audio path.

Hlabs PRE169 Specifications:

• API© style 500 series format
• Max Gain: 67dB
• Pad: -33dB
• Output level: 0 to -30dB
• +48V Phantom Power
• Polarity switch
• Discrete 12dB/octave HPF (High Pass Filter) variable from 20Hz to 315Hz
• Input transformer: Neutrik NTM-4
• Output transformer: Carnhill VT24499
• Frequency response (1kΩ load): ±1dB from 6.2Hz to 25KHz
• Mic input impedance: 1.2kΩ
• DI input impedance: > 1.0MΩ
• Output impedance: < 20Ω - Transformer balanced
• Equivalent Input Noise (EIN): -125dBu @ max gain (Mic input)
• Power consumption: 120mA | Peak 215mA